This game featured the second meeting between these two teams. In their first meeting, Taqwa came out on top after a very tight game that could’ve gone in favour of either team.

The game started off with Ridha putting intense pressure on Taqwa right from the get go. They’d gone winless in two games, so they seemed to be playing with an extra jump in their step, however were unable to capitalize on their many chances. It ended up being Taqwa’s Dawud Ciombar that managed to score first by walking into the slot and roofing one near the end of the first period.

The second period started off very similar to the first, with Ridha generating many scoring chances against Taqwa’s goalie Ahmed Mobin. They managed to score two goals in quick succession thanks to their star player Yusuf Ingar, giving them a 2-1 lead. Taqwa’s Mohammed Hamoud struck a few minutes later with Saqib Khokhar and Ibrahim Butt setting him up for the goal, making the score 2-2. Then Ridha’s Farhan Ingar netted one to give his team the lead, with about 3 minutes left to play.

Falling behind seemed to motivate Taqwa and they managed to put on some sustained pressure in the offensive zone and drew a penalty. Right off the draw, Taqwa’s Ibrahim Hindy won it back to Dawud Ciobar who put a shot on net, with Ibrahim gathering the rebound and scoring to tie the game with 2:30 left in the game. The two teams then traded chances over the next minute or so, and Taqwa’s Huzaifa Panchbhaya managed to pick off an errant Ridha pass and ripped a slapshot home to give Taqwa a 4-3 lead with 1:50 left in the game. Ridha then pulled their goalie and put on a lot of pressure against Taqwa pressing for the equalizer, but were unable to do so. Taqwa scored an empty netter to seal the deal, giving them the 5-3 lead.

With the win, Taqwa now sits atop it’s division with two wins in two games played. Ridha on the other hand has lost its third in a row and now have a lot of pressure on them to find a way to claw back up the standings. That being said, Ridha had dictated the pace the vast majority of the game, with much sustained pressure and many quality scoring chances. They deserved the win had Taqwa not managed to score on the limited opportunities they received. It’ll be interesting to see how these two teams shape up against teams of other divisions!